National
National Awards for e-Governance 2023
⇒ The 26th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) 2023 was organised on 24th and 25th August, 2023 at Brilliant Convention Centre, Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
Organized by:
The two-day National Conference on e-Governance was jointly organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Government of India and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India in collaboration with the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
Theme:
The 26th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) was organised on the theme of ‘Viksit Bharat, Empowering Citizens’.
Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh participated in the 26th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) along with other dignitaries and senior officers from Government of India and State Governments.
- The 26th NCeG provided an appropriate platform for effective and meaningful brainstorming on the latest technologies for promoting e-Governance and for sharing knowledge and insights on the theme identified for the National e-Governance Conference.
Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Government of India and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India have been jointly organizing the National Conference on e-Governance every year in partnership with one State Government since 1997.
National Awards for e-Governance 2023:
» During the 26th NCeG, National e-Governance Awards were presented under 5 categories viz.-
- Government Process Re-engineering for Digital Transformation
- Application of Emerging Technologies for providing Citizen Centric Services
- District level initiative in e-Governance
- Research on Citizen Centric Services by Academic/Research Institutions
- Application of Emerging Technologies in Governance by Startups
Winners of National Awards for e-Governance 2023:
» SVAMITVA Scheme wins the National Award for e-Governance 2023 (Gold)
- SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages Abadi and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) Scheme of Ministry of Panchayati Raj has been conferred with the prestigious National Award for e-Governance 2023 (Gold) at the 26th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG).
- SVAMITVA Scheme has been conferred for Application of Emerging Technologies for Providing Citizen Centric Services.
About SVAMITVA Scheme:
» SVAMITVA Scheme of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj provides ownership to property owners in village-inhabited area by using latest drone and GIS technology.
- The Property Cards facilitate monetization of rural residential assets for bank loan and other financial benefits and help in the settlement of land-related disputes through the preparation of 5cm accuracy maps.
- The Scheme is implemented with the collaborative efforts of Survey of India being the technology implementation partner, State Revenue and Panchayati Raj Departments, and NIC–GIS.
Complete List of Winners of National Awards for e-Governance 2023
President Murmu releases a commemorative coin on NTR's centenary year
⇒ The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu released the commemorative coin on Late Shri NT Rama Rao on his centenary year at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre on August 28, 2023.
- President Murmu released a commemorative coin of Rs 100 on centenary year of NTR.
- The President appreciated Ministry of Finance, Government of India for bringing the commemorative coin on NTR.
International
15th BRICS Summit 2023
⇒ Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi visited Johannesburg, South Africa from 22-24 August 2023 to attend the 15th BRICS Summit at the invitation of Mr Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, President of the Republic of South Africa.
This was the first in-person BRICS Summit since 2019. The Summit provided an opportunity to review progress of the initiatives launched by the grouping, and identify future areas of activity.
South Africa as BRICS Chair in 2023:
The 15th BRICS Summit was hosted by South Africa during its Chairmanship in 2023.
Theme:
South Africa assumed the Chairship of BRICS on 01 January 2023 under the theme ‘BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development, and Inclusive Multilateralism’.
- The theme emphasises the continued value of BRICS as a partnership of leading emerging markets and developing countries providing leadership and momentum towards global growth and sustainable development.
For 2023, the theme of South Africa’s Chairship of BRICS had the following priorities:
- Developing a partnership towards an equitable Just Transition
- Transforming Education and Skills Development for the Future
- Unlocking Opportunities through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement
- Strengthening Post-Pandemic Socio-Economic Recovery and the Attainment of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development
- Strengthening Multilateralism, including Working Toward Real Reform of Global Governance Institutions and Strengthening the Meaningful Participation of Women in Peace Processes
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi arrived at Johannesburg on 22 August 2023 after which he participated in BRICS Business Forum Leaders’ Dialogue and BRICS Leaders Retreat.
BRICS Business Forum Leaders’ Dialogue:
The Leaders were briefed on the deliberations of the BRICS Business Forum. PM stressed that together BRICS can contribute significantly to global welfare, particularly of the Global South.
‘BRICS Leaders Retreat’ at Summer Place:
The Retreat which took place in closed format, was an opportunity for the leaders to discuss global developments and ways for leveraging the BRICS platform to find solutions to global challenges.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi participated in the 15th BRICS Summit held under South Africa’s chairship, in Johannesburg on 23 August 2023.
The leaders held productive discussions including on global economic recovery, partnership with Africa and the Global South and reviewed the progress made on the BRICS agenda so far.
During his address, Prime Minister called for a strengthened BRICS that will be:
- B – Breaking barriers
- R – Revitalising economies
- I – Inspiring Innovation
- C – Creating opportunities
- S – Shaping the future
In his various interventions, Prime Minister highlighted the following:
- Called for setting defined timelines for UNSC reforms
- Called for reform of Multilateral Financial Institutions
- Called for reform of WTO
- Exhorted BRICS to build consensus on its expansion
- Urged BRICS to send a global message of unity and not polarisation
- Proposed creation of a BRICS Space Exploration Consortium
- Offered Indian Digital Public Infrastructure – the Indian stack to BRICS partners
- Proposed undertaking skill mapping, skilling and promoting mobility among BRICS countries
- Proposed joint efforts of BRICS countries for protection of Big Cats under International Big Cat Alliance
- Proposed establishing a repository of traditional medicine among BRICS countries
- Called upon BRICS partners to support AU’s permanent membership of the G20
BRICS-Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus Dialogue:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the BRICS-Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus Dialogue, on 24 August, 2023 in Johannesburg.
- The meeting saw participation from the guest countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America, along with the leaders of the BRICS countries.
During his visit, Prime Minister held bilateral meetings with some of the leaders present in Johannesburg.
On the sidelines of the 15th BRICS Summit, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi met Mr Cyril Ramaphosa, President of the Republic of South Africa; Dr. Abiy Ahmed Ali, Prime Minister of the Republic of Ethiopia; Mr. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal; Dr Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran; and Filipe Jacinto Nyusi, President of the Republic of Mozambique.
New Full Members:
» BRICS leaders announced the admission of six new countries from next year as the club of large and populous emerging economies seeks to reshape the global order.
- The BRICS countries agreed at their annual summit to make Argentina, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates full members from January 1.
About BRICS:
The acronym BRIC was coined in 2001 by then Goldman Sachs chief economist Jim O’Neill in a research paper that underlined the growth potential of Brazil, Russia, India and China.
- The bloc was founded as an informal club in 2009 to provide a platform for its members to challenge a world order dominated by the United States and its Western allies. Its creation was initiated by Russia.
- The 1st BRIC Summit was held on 16 June 2009 in Russia (Yekaterinburg). It was agreed to expand BRIC into BRICS with the inclusion of South Africa at the BRIC Foreign Ministers’ meeting in New York in 2010. Accordingly, South Africa attended the 3rd BRICS Summit in Sanya in 2011.
Mechanisms:
- BRICS cooperation has two mechanisms of cooperation– consultation on issues of mutual interest through meetings of Leaders and Ministers and practical cooperation through meetings of Senior Officials in a number of areas including Trade, Finance, Health, Education, Science & Technology, Agriculture, Environment, Energy, Labour, Disaster Management, Anti-Corruption, Anti-Drugs, etc.
- BRICS Business-to-Business engagement is through BRICS Business Council and BRICS Women Business Alliance.
- Other BRICS exchanges can broadly be categorized as Parliamentary Exchanges, Seminars/Conferences, Business, People-to-people exchanges and Track II meetings.
- BRICS countries are Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.